A week ago, Vern Raburn, CEO of Eclipse Aviation in Albuquerque, New Mexico, expressed
his opinion about the upcoming vote on raising the minimum wage in Albuquerque (assuming he wrote it and it wasn’t written by the
Chamber of Commerce or Karl Rove). I responded to his gall at taking public money and opposing the public good. Jon Knudsen put it best:
“Ingrate” would seem like an appropriate term.
A couple of days later, Raburn’s opinion piece was front page news. After
all, the Journal pronounces him the “arguably the state’s most visible entrepreneur” — well, yes, “most visible” now that he’s on the
front page. To Andrew Webb’s and the Journal’s credit, the story does eventually get around to the he-said-she-said of modern
journalism, but the real message, as it so often is, is in the headline: “Bad for Business.” Mission Accomplished.
Today, the
Journal offers some balance by having an employer speak in favor of the change (excerpt below).
When you go to vote, remember what
King said almost 40 years ago:
MARTIN LUTHER KING: “All labor has dignity. [Y]ou are reminding … the
nation that it is a crime for people to live in this rich nation and receive starvation wages.”
ABQjournal: CEO: Minimum Wage Bill Access Clause Bad for Business
Thursday, September 22, 2005, By Andrew Webb, Journal Staff Writer
Eclipse Aviation CEO Vern Raburn says he would have
bypassed Albuquerque if a proposed wage ordinance with its controversial public access provision had been on the city’s books
when he was looking to relocate his company in 2000….
Raburn has joined other business leaders calling for defeat of the
ordinance, which will raise the minimum wage and, they say, force employers to allow access to activists. …
Supporters
maintain that critics, among them a Chamber of Commerce-led initiative, are using the access clause to distract attention from their real
concern— that businesses face having to pay higher wages.
They contend opponents are exaggerating the effect of the access
wording. …
The sentence at issue is:
“Every employer shall allow any member of the public access to non-
work areas of the employer’s business that are otherwise open to the public or customers generally, such as parking lots,
sidewalks, and pedestrian areas, to inform employees of their rights under this ordinance and other laws.” …
Henderson
said the access clause was added to Albuquerque’s proposal because some businesses in Santa Fe had attempted to skirt that
city’s minimum wage law
.
“We wanted to see something that would help hold businesses accountable to the
law,” he said. …
Opponents, he said, “are not only making lies about how this ordinance could be used, but
they’re ignoring the fact that 40,000 hard working people in Albuquerque are in desperate need of a raise.”
Please re-read that clause about access. In NO WAY does it allow the disruption opponents are using as a sham
to defeat the ordinance. Further, supporters and councilors have offered to be more explicit in its restrictions.
If Raburn
genuinely believes that clause exposes his company to invasion, than he isn’t very smart. More likely, he opposes any interference in
his business. Not the attitude you want in a guy who wants to fill the air with small jets. peace, mjh
ABQjournal: Value Work by Paying Workers a Living
Wage By Mike Chandler, President, Valley Gases
My lowest-paid, employee is paid $10.50 an hour. My decision to pay well
above the federal minimum wage — and above the $7.50 that will be Albuquerque’s minimum wage if voters approve it Oct. 4 — is both a
personal choice and a business decision.
My employees need to be able to support their families on the wages they earn
— and I know they cannot at the current minimum wage.
This issue is not just about
economics. It’s about values. It’s about whether we value work and the opportunities it should bring. And it’s about whether
we value working parents and their efforts to carve out a better future for their children and, ultimately, for New Mexico. …
Low-wage workers have very little bargaining power. The notion that anyone can refuse to take a low-wage job, or
choose to quit one and move on to a better option, assumes that a better option actually exists. … Likewise, the option of going back
to school to prepare for a better job is closed to too many working parents who are working more than full-time just to try to make ends
meet.
Working families in New Mexico work more hours each year than the national average — and more than full-time. Where are
they going to find the time to pursue educational opportunities to prepare for a job that may not exist? …
New Mexico
labor is actually a bargain. Employers get to pay wages that are only 80 percent of the national average, while receiving
productivity from New Mexicans that is 90 percent of the national average. A net gain for employers, and a net loss for employees.
It’s now up to the citizens of Albuquerque to do the right thing by voting for an increase in the city’s minimum wage. Make work
an opportunity for greater economic prosperity for more of our families.
PS: searching Google for Vern Raburn, CEO of Eclipse Aviation
in Albuquerque, New Mexico yields over 400 pages. The top 100 links are mostly glowing PR, except for Democracy for New Mexico (thanks for the link and nice comment) and my previous
blog entry on the INGRATE (FUD you, Vern Raburn). Wouldn’t it be great if a potential employee or investor saw in the top ten? Vern Raburn, CEO
of Eclipse Aviation in Albuquerque, New Mexico puts his selfish interests ahead of those of the people of New Mexico even after all we
have invested in him. He is an ingrate. mjh